False Ustaz Kills 81 People In Boko Haram Attack In Nigeria

Boko Haram (Source: Wikimedia Commons)

JAKARTA - No fewer than 81 people were killed in the attack by Boko Haram militants in a village in northeastern Nigeria, the Borno state government was quoted as saying by CNN. According to one resident who survived, the perpetrator was disguising himself as an Islamic religious teacher or ustaz.

Local testimony said the group attacked the village with tanks and armored cars filled with weapons. Seven people, including the village head, children and women were kidnapped from Faduma Kolomdi, Borno.

Residents reported that the men rounded up the villagers on Tuesday and started shooting at them for several hours. The attack survivor describes how the attack was carried out by the perpetrator in his disguise.

"They gathered us together and said they wanted to give a sermon to us. They asked us to hand over any weapons we had. Some of the villagers handed over their firearms, bows and arrows," said one witness.

Then, suddenly they began to ban the people who were gathering. "Even children and women were targeted. Many were shot at close range," said the unnamed man.

Residents who survived, buried at least 49 bodies. Meanwhile 32 other bodies were taken by their families themselves from neighboring villages.

The massacre was carried out by Boko Haram and ISWAP or Islamic State of West Africa. They are the group that operates terrorist sleeper cells in the area, according to Nigerian Military Spokesman Sagir Musa.

A number of military troops have been sent to the scene to keep watch. Musa said the attack occurred on Tuesday morning when several breeders were feeding their pets.

The troops then called them from the fields to gather. Once collected, a shooting took place.

It is known that tens of thousands of people were killed and more than three million people displaced during the more than a decade of the Boko Haram insurgency in northeast Nigeria. The group has carried out massacres, burned mosques, and attacked military posts in the area.